operating construction projects. They coordinate the activities of virtually everyone engaged in the work: the surveyors; workers who lay out and construct the temporary roads and ramps, excavate for the foundation, build the forms and pour the concrete; and workers who build the steel framework. These engineers also make regular progress reports to the owners of the structure.
Community and urban planning. Those engaged in this area of civil engineering may plan and develop community within a city, or entire cities. Such planning involves far more than engineering consideration; environmental, social, and economic factors in the use and development of land and natural resources are also key elements. These civil engineers coordinate planning of public works along with private development. They evaluate the kinds of facilities needed, including streets and highways, public transportation systems, airports, port facilities, water-supply and waste water-disposal systems, public buildings, parks, and recreational and other facilities to ensure social and economic as well as environmental well-being.
Photogrametry, surveying, and mapping. The civil engineers in this specialty precisely measure the Earth’s surface to obtain reliable information for locating and designing engineering projects. This practice often involves high-technology methods such as satellite and aerial surveying, and computer-processing of photographic imagery. Radio
signal from satellites, scans by laser and sonic beams, are converted to maps to provide far more accurate measurements for boring tunnels, building highways and dams, plotting flood control and irrigation project, locating subsurface geologic formations that may affect a construction project, and a host of other building uses.
Other specialties. Two additional civil engineering specialties that are not entirely within the scope of civil engineering but are essential to the discipline are engineering management and engineering teaching. Engineering management. Many civil engineers choose careers that eventually lead to management. Others are able to start their careers in management positions. The civil engineer-manager combines technical knowledge with an ability to organize and coordinate worker power, materials, machinery, and money. These engineers may work in government—municipal, county, state, or federal; in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as military or civilian management engineers; or in semiautonomous regional or city authorities or similar organizations. They may also manage private engineering firms ranging in size from a few employees to hundreds.
Engineering teaching. The civil engineer who chooses a teaching career usually teaches both graduate and undergraduate students in technical specialties. Many teaching civil engineers engage in basic research that eventually leads to technical innovations in construction
materials and methods. Many also serve as consultants on engineering projects, or on technical boards and commissions associated with major projects.
土木工程学
土木工程学作为最老的工程技术学科，是指规划，设计，施工及对建筑环境的管理。此处的环境包括建筑符合科学规范的所有结构，从灌溉和排水系统到火箭发射设施。
土木工程师建造道路，桥梁，管道，大坝，海港，发电厂，给排水系统，医院，学校，公共交通和其他现代社会和大量人口集中地区的基础公共设施。他们也建造私有设施，比如飞机场，铁路，管线，摩天大楼，以及其他设计用作工业，商业和住宅途径的大型结构。此外，土木工程师还规划设计及建造完整的城市和乡镇，并且最近一直在规划设计容纳设施齐全的社区的空间平台。
土木一词来源于拉丁文词“公民”。在1782年，英国人John Smeaton为了把他的非军事工程工作区别于当时占优势地位的军事工程师的工作而采用的名词。自从那时起，土木工程学被用于提及从事公共设施建设的工程师，尽管其包含的领域更为广阔。
领域。因为包含范围太广，土木工程学又被细分为大量的技术专业。不同类型的工程需要多种不同土木工程专业技术。一个项目开始的时候，土木工程师要对场地进行测绘，定位有用的布置，如地下水水位，下水道，和电力线。岩土工程专家则进行土力学试验以确定土壤能否承受工程荷载。环境工程专家研究工程对当地的影响，包括对空气和地下水的可能污染，对当地动植物生活的影响，以及如何让工
程设计满足政府针对环境保护的需要。交通工程专家确定必需的不同种类设施以减轻由整个工程造成的对当地公路和其他交通网络的负担。同时，结构工程专家利用初步数据对工程作详细规划，设计和说明。从项目开始到结束，对这些土木工程专家的工作进行监督和调配的则是施工管理专家。根据其他专家所提供的信息，施工管理专家计算材料和人工的数量和花费，所有工作的进度表，订购工作所需要的材料和设备，雇佣承包商和分包商，还要做些额外的监督工作以确保工程能按时按质完成。
贯穿任何给定项目，土木工程师都需要大量使用计算机。计算机用于设计工程中使用的多数元件（即计算机辅助设计，或者CAD）并对其进行管理。计算机成为了现代土木工程师的必备品，因为它使得工程师能有效地掌控所需的大量数据从而确定建造一项工程的最佳方法。
结构工程学。在这一专业领域，土木工程师规划设计各种类型的结构，包括桥梁，大坝，发电厂，设备支撑，海面上的特殊结构，美国太空计划，发射塔，庞大的天文和无线电望远镜，以及许多其他种类的项目。结构工程师应用计算机确定一个结构必须承受的力：自重，风荷载和飓风荷载，建筑材料温度变化引起的胀缩，以及地震荷载。他们也需确定不同种材料如钢筋，混凝土，塑料，石头，沥青，砖，铝或其他建筑材料等的复合作用。